Iran Inks First Import Order Paid With Crypto

Iran will commonly use crypto to settle import orders by the end of next month, tweeted the head of Iran’s Trade Promotion Organization

article-image

Tehran, Iran. Credit: Unsplash.

share

key takeaways

  • Iran recently paid for an import order with $10 million in cryptocurrency, local media reported
  • The US has imposed strict sanctions on Iran for the past 40 years

Iran is reportedly moving to directly facilitate imports with crypto, which could allow the nation to bypass hard-hitting sanctions imposed by the US.

Local news outlet Tasnim reported on Tuesday that the Islamic republic filed its first crypto-based order, worth $10 million, but didn’t specify which digital asset was used for the transaction or what was imported.

Alireza Peyman-Pak, head of the country’s Trade Promotion Organization (TPO), appeared to confirm the order in a tweet and said it could be the first of many. The TPO, which is tied to the nation’s Ministry of Commerce, promotes Iran’s non-oil exports.

“By the end of September, the use of cryptocurrencies and smart contracts will be widespread in foreign trade with target countries,” he wrote (automatically translated).

The US has imposed crippling sanctions on Iran over the past four decades. Under the law, businesses in the US are prohibited from conducting business in or with Iran — including the servicing of crypto investors and traders. The sanctions also ban imports.

But Iran may be using cryptocurrency mining to dodge sanctions. A study from Elliptic last year found that 4.5% of all bitcoin mining takes place in Iran, allowing the country to earn hundreds of millions of dollars that can be used for import orders and sanction evasion.

Iran officially recognized cryptocurrency mining as a legitimate business in 2019, following months of speculation, and issued over 1,000 mining licenses to generate capital for the nation.

Furthermore, crypto traders in Iran might not really be fully restricted. They may have been able to avoid sanctions by using cryptocurrency exchanges that gave them easy access, recent reports suggest.

Reuters reported in July that Binance, the top crypto exchange by trade volume, continued to allow Iran-based customers despite US sanctions. Chagri Poyraz, global head of sanctions at Binance, said traders may have been able to bypass geographical restrictions using virtual private networks (VPNs).

Kraken is also reportedly under investigation for allegedly facilitating crypto trades in Iran that violated the same sanctions.


Start your day with top crypto insights from David Canellis and Katherine Ross. Subscribe to the Empire newsletter.

Explore the growing intersection between crypto, macroeconomics, policy and finance with Ben Strack, Casey Wagner and Felix Jauvin. Subscribe to the Forward Guidance newsletter.

Get alpha directly in your inbox with the 0xResearch newsletter — market highlights, charts, degen trade ideas, governance updates, and more.

The Lightspeed newsletter is all things Solana, in your inbox, every day. Subscribe to daily Solana news from Jack Kubinec and Jeff Albus.

Tags

Upcoming Events

Javits Center North | 445 11th Ave

Tues - Thurs, March 18 - 20, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

kamino cover.jpg

Research

Kamino has solidified its position as the leading money market on Solana and is emerging as a DeFi bluechip. Although DeFi competition is fierce, Kamino has kept iterating on its product to provide the best-in-class UX, paired with a robust risk management framework and battle-tested infrastructure. Given the rollout of Kamino Lend V2, the protocol may scale aggressively over the coming months, penetrating previously untapped markets in Solana DeFi.

article-image

Also in the tokenized fund space, Franklin Templeton launches on Base and Securitize hits $1 billion in tokenized RWA onchain

article-image

It turns out that bitcoin never actually hit an all-time high in March. Thanks a lot, inflation.

article-image

Spire, Citrea and Nillion also announced raises this week

article-image

The latest recipient of an SEC Wells notice is a Web3 gaming company

article-image

Thursday’s selloff was led by tech stocks, triggered by disappointing outlooks from giants Meta and Microsoft

article-image

Historically, positive returns have been a bit more of a toss-up during the year’s 11th month